There are few audio companies that combine state-of-the-art audio engineering and cutting edge industry designs like the British manufacturer KEF, which has just launched its 8th generation Q Series loudspeakers.
Designed to provide homeowners with a choice of stylish and high-performing speakers that come without the high price tag of typical audiophile products, the latest Q Series features a number of proprietary KEF technologies.
The Series includes the Q150 and Q350 bookshelf loudspeakers, the Q550, Q750 and Q950 floorstanding speakers, and the Q650c center-channel loudspeaker.
Q Series Engineering Updates
All Q Series 2017 products incorporate a new redesigned version of KEF's proprietary Uni-Q driver array. Among the updated design elements included in the Q 2017's Uni-Q driver array are a newly damped tweeter loading tube, which KEF says improves the sound of lower treble frequencies.
The products also benefit from new, low-distortion inductors in the speakers' crossover networks that are said to enable the speakers to produce cleaner, more accurate bass.
KEF says the Q150 and Q350 utilize its Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) port design, which has been moved to the rear of the speaker to improve clarity. KEF also relocated the Uni-Q coaxial driver array to the middle of the speakers' enclosures to minimize internal cabinet resonances.
Looking at the Q550, Q750 and Q950, KEF says the speakers employ larger roll surrounds and new spiders in their low-frequency drivers to improve bass response no matter what volume level the speakers are playing at. The Q550, Q750 and Q950 also include paper-cone midrange drivers that are said to improve the speakers' midrange clarity.
Other updates the floorstanding models feature include new suspension systems for their Auxiliary Bass Radiators (ABRs) for tighter bass response at higher volumes, and closed-box midrange sections. KEF explains the closed-box midrange designs help provide punchier, cleaner bass, and with the midrange section's new midrange drivers, the midrange response, “produces a more natural bass roll-off between the drivers for a more natural sound.”
KEF adds the Q 2017 Series' Q650c center-channel loudspeaker also employs the closed-boxed midrange cabinet design, along with a 2.5-way design that features a pair of 6.5-inch drivers flanking its new Uni-Q coaxial driver array.
The speakers are available in a choice of black or white finishes, and aesthetically they utilize a seamless baffle design highlighted by optional magnetic grilles that create an integrated appearance.
KEF Q Series 2017 MSRPs
- Q150 bookshelf speakers: $550 per pair
- Q350 bookshelf speakers: $650 per pair
- Q550 floorstanding speaker: $550 each
- Q750 floorstanding speaker: $750 each
- Q950 floorstanding speaker: $900 each
- Q650c center-channel speaker: $650 each
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